G. Peter Jemison in a Seneca longhouse.
INSET: The Grand Council is the governing body of the Haudenosaunee and makes decisions based on the Great Law of Peace. The Hiawatha Belt’s return symbolized recognition of their ancestors’ immense contribution to America’s foundation of government. Shown from left, Haudenosaunee elders with the Hiawatha Belt: spiritual leader Tom Porter (Mohawk), Tadodaho Sid Hill (Onondaga) and Wampum Maker Ken Maracle (Cayuga).
T
he second episode, Nature to Nations, explores America’s first democracy,
founded
around the year 1150 by the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) people of present-day upstate
New York and Canada. The Hiawatha Belt depicts the joining of the five Haudenosaunee nations under the Great Law of Peace, which provides instructions on the treatment of oth- ers, the preservation of a democratic society and the importance of reason in maintaining peace. It is made of wampum, meaning “white shell beads” in the languages of the Narra- gansett of Rhode Island and Wampanoag of Massachusetts. They are made of quahog clam and whelk shells carefully crafted into beads, woven into belts and placed on other items.
According to the Haudenosaunee, wam- pum has the power to heal, hold memories and create bonds between nations, as the Hiawatha Belt has done. The Peacemaker, sent from the Creator and a prophet of peace, worked with Hiawatha, a grieving warrior and one of the Peacemaker’s first disciples. Hiawatha’s daughters were killed by the dark magic of the Onondaga warlord, Tadodaho. Eventually, with the help of Jigonsaseh, the first clan mother, Tadodaho was able to ac- cept peace and appointed the Keeper of the Central Fire. The Peacemaker assembles the chiefs from each nation; each bring wampum and the Peacemaker weaves the strands into one belt – The Hiawatha Belt. From left to right, the following nations are represented in the Hiawatha Belt: Seneca, Cayuga, Onon-
daga, Oneida and the Mohawk. The Tuscarora, currently the sixth nation, joined in the early 1700s after the Belt was created. G. Peter Jemi- son (Seneca) speaks of the importance of the return of the Hiawatha Belt from the State of New York back to the community: “To explain the Belt’s significance we created a Haudeno- saunee Grand Council with the youth. They learned how a question is introduced to the Grand Council, how it is reviewed, by whom in the process and how a decision is arrived at. They learned the considerations Chiefs must be mindful of when making decisions…. It is my belief that we brought life back to the Hi- awatha Belt that had been away from Haude- nosaunee hands for a hundred years. The Belt, in turn, educated us as to its importance.”
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 13
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